To Flee the Fallen Flag
by NeddyZeeKat
Summary: A plan that has been brewing for almost five years is finally set off when Sakura and Tomoyo are arrested for speaking against the government. AU.
1. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer:** Clamp, dearest Clamp, I'm afraid I don't own Sakura, Li, Tomoyo, or Eriol at all. In fact, I've never read CCS _or_ the other series. I accredit my beta reader **Shiruba Niko** and my close friends **Estalio** and **Martha** for making sure I keep these four in character at all times and preserve at least some semblance of what they are in the series they belong to. There is violence in this story, as well as romance and some strong ideas. I do not mean to insult anybody with my own opinions and prejudices. Read the story for the story, and if you can't handle it, I advise you not read it. All flamers will be handed many virtual slaps.

_Note: If you ask a question in a review that I can't answer within the contents of this story, you can find the answer in my bio. That said, have fun reading and please leave a review! (Or two…or three…or four…or fifteen…-)_

_**Tears of Tyranny**_

**Part One**

_To Flee the Fallen Flag_

By Onyx Dawn

**"."**

Chapter One

**World at War**

Nineteen-year-old Sakura Kinomoto listened intently to the buzzing radio, attempting to pick up some semblance of an answer to anything in the mad gibberish. The reporter went on and on about the wondrous Minister, probably expecting to get a pay raise or something. Sakura shook her head against the couch she was pretending to sleep on and repressed a disgusted snort. She closed her eyes to block out the generic pattern on the furniture and tried to listen to Tomoyo's soft voice as she sang and cooked their meagre lunch. Tomoyo's voice, as usual, succeeded in calming Sakura's nerves slightly. The young woman, though she was no older than Sakura herself, had taken on the role of big sister almost five years ago after the 'accident'. While Tomoyo had come out of the incident with a changed roll in her life, Sakura had lost her memory and so could not remember a time when they had known freedom.

Sakura breathed deeply and realized, too late, her mistake. She coughed and spat the particles of dust and dead moths out of her mouth, gasping at the thought of swallowing bugs and wasted skin. Tomoyo tsked in the corner where the once-white stove sat and walked right to the couch, putting her hands on her hips. She sighed as Sakura rubbed her eyes and banged off the radio, almost busting it in the process. Tomoyo sat down next to Sakura and handed her a dirty wooden spoon with some icing on it.

"Here," she said softly. "Eat that...it's from the canister they brought yesterday. Something sweet, for once. You deserve it." She smiled at Sakura and wrapped her in a one-armed hug before standing up and going back to the kitchen corner. Sakura had the feeling this was _all_ the icing they had, but licked the spoon gratefully anyway because she knew Tomoyo wouldn't have it any other way. After sitting on the couch for a moment with the newly-cleaned spoon, Sakura stood up and stumbled groggily over to the fridge and leaned against it.

"Tomoyo," she started in a questioning voice, "What was freedom like?" She chewed her lip for a moment, not too startled but slightly disappointed by Tomoyo's lack of reaction. The long-haired, mysterious woman kept stirring the pot of already cooked rice as if it were the most important thing in the world. Finally she stopped her movements and turned around, meeting Sakura's eyes.

"I can't-" she began, speaking hesitantly as if weighing her every word. "We're not supposed to talk about it, Sakura, you know that." She ran her hands through her hair, pulling the long bluish strands away from her face to reveal her bright brown eyes. Sakura nodded and looked down, resting her chin on her chest and folding her arms defensively at her midsection. She felt terrible for asking, now, because she _did_ know how much trouble they could get into. She just wanted to taste the knowledge; she already had a vague idea. Freedom, she supposed, was being able to speak your mind and not worry about being whipped.

"I'm sorry, Tomoyo," she whispered, sniffling. "I guess it's just..." she stopped, not sure about how to explain it. She was lost for words, surprisingly, and it scared her something fierce. Sakura had only rarely found herself lost for words before. Four years of tyranny had not quenched her cheerful disposition. As head cheerleader at Tompeda High school, she was prided for being so optimistic about everything. In fact, if anybody were to ask some of her lesser acquaintances, they would say she worshipped this life she lived.

Of course, she didn't, but what do strangers or acquaintances know about a person? "It's alright," Tomoyo reassured, stepping close enough to Sakura to wipe away her unshed tears. She lifted Sakura's chin up and stared into the emerald eyes, wearing an expression that practically forced Sakura to smile and even giggle. "You deserve to know, of course...freedom is like the world on anti-depressants, permanently." She shook her head, laughing and letting go of Sakura's chin. "Not the best way to describe it, I guess," she admitted. "I've never taken an anti-depressant."

"Well, it sounds nice; the concept, at least." Sakura walked to the stove and tasted the bland rice. She wrinkled her nose in disgust, but put on a cheery voice and said "Mhm," as if it were the most delicious thing in the world. "Wonderful supper tonight." She looked at the digital watch on her wrist and frowned. "It's seven o' clock, why didn't we eat earlier?" She gave Tomoyo a confused look. They were used to eating dinner as soon as the dinner bell tolled at five-thirty. They were constantly hungry, and the sooner they could eat the better.

"They changed the rotation," Tomoyo explained, her smile fading slightly. "Ghetto one starts are five-thirty, two starts at six, three at six-thirty, and us at seven."

"But the bell-hey, it didn't go off at all today," Sakura said, finally noting the fact. She hadn't noticed, at five-thirty, how Tomoyo had come home with a set scowl on her face. She was too busy taking advantage of the hour of TV she had been saving up for a month.

"Yeah," Tomoyo confirmed. "The Bell-Ringers were having trouble with it, so they just told us at work. Sorry I didn't mention it...forgot."

Sakura shrugged, having no complaints because she, too, had forgotten to acknowledge Tomoyo once today. She sent a fierce glare to the TV and huffed slightly, which Tomoyo must have taken the wrong way because she sighed and apologized again, looking hurt. Sakura blinked in surprise and stared at Tomoyo for a minute before realizing her mistake. "Oh, sorry, I was just mad at the gover-at the TV." Sakura glanced around nervously, hoping none of the audio personnel had caught that little slip. If they did...shaking her head, Sakura slumped back against the fridge with a discontented sigh.

"I know," Tomoyo said, nodding sympathetically. "The TV certainly has got-"-the phone rang-"Whoops...I'll get that." Tomoyo frowned slightly, wondering who would dare break the no-phone-until-nine-thirty rule. Unless, horror of horrors, it was a government official calling to change their schedule yet again. Sakura pushed herself off the fridge and walked across the room, sitting back down on the couch. She let Tomoyo's voice wash over her, not really listening to the words until she noted a hint of panic.

"What?" Tomoyo was saying. "No, you don't understand. I wasn't denouncing the Minister in any way-I mean, I wasn't-the Minister...long live the Minister, yes, yes, I quite agree. Excellent man. I would never...of course not, maybe you have the wrong number...You don't need to get all foul with me, Mister, I'm perfectly aware of the laws of the-no, sir, I would never do that. Long live the Minister, sir, I quite agree." There was a long silence in which Sakura let the words sink in. Her heart began racing, thumping against her ribcage like a frightened rabbit.

"Sir, I swear-please! My cousin, I couldn't leave her...well, yes, she's nineteen but she lost her memory...it isn't a sap story, sir! It's the truth, I-of course, I'm sorry, sir. It's just that there's no justification. I've always agreed...yes, long live the Minister! Now _please_ understand sir, I would never..." But Tomoyo fell silent once again, listening to the man on the other line. Sakura looked up in time to see her shoulders slump. Tomoyo's eyes went vacant, dead almost, and she nodded to the phone. "Of course, sir, I understand. I'll be ready." With that she hung up the phone and stared at Sakura.

"We have to go," she said quietly.

Sakura reacted faster than the pacing of her heart. Tomoyo asked her to jump and Sakura didn't even ask how high. She just did it, and now, more than ever, she knew that was exactly what Tomoyo needed.

**"."**

Princess Alysuoun paced the perimeter of their cell with the ferocity of someone trying to wear a hole through the floor. Her soft blue eyes would, on occasion, dart over to her companion for a few moments. She would examine his lean form and then begin pacing again; pretending that she no longer knew he was there. Alysuoun then looked up to the window, about three feet above her head and barred so heavily that a cockroach could hardly crawl in, with a despairing plea in her eyes that went unanswered by the mercilessly cold midnight sky. In her mind she could see a spark of freedom, trodden on, perhaps, but not entirely gone. But, of course, her companion had given up ages ago and she could do nothing without him.

Li, said companion, sat sometimes for hours in the same position he was now. His knees were tucked under his chin, his arms were wrapped around his shins, and his eyes were closed as he pondered the secrets of the universe. He wasn't hoping, or pacing, or thinking about freedom in any way at all. Instead, he had long ago accepted their fate and made the best of it. He treated every meal like it was a delicious feast, he always made sure to treat Princess Alysuoun with the respect she had once deserved as daughter of the Minister. Alysuoun thought sadly about how it hadn't always been that way; she thought about the closeness they had shared in times of peace and happiness. She remembered he used to smile a lot, and blush a lot too. That was only when Sakura came around, though.

Alysuoun stopped pacing at last, realizing that she had actually managed to lull Li asleep with the rhythm of her bare feet padding along the straw-covered cement floor. She shook her head with disbelief and sat down a few feet across from him. "Wake up," she said ungraciously. "I've got an idea." He didn't react, but Alysuoun could tell by the hitch in his breathing tempo that he heard her and understood quite clearly. Li moved his head so that she could not see his face, buried between his knees as he stared vacantly at the floor.

"Not a single one of your plans has worked within the last four years, Swan, what makes you think it'll work today?" Li sounded sceptical, as always, and there was a hint of exasperation in his voice that signified she had his full attention. The first thing she said, however, had nothing to do with her newfound plan.

"Don't call me Swan," she snapped bitterly. That was what her father and Nadeshiko used to call her, and it brought back bittersweet memories that Alysuoun tried very hard to forget. Li looked up and raised an eyebrow at her, though he understood perfectly what the name did to her. He shrugged and gave her a look that said "Continue or I'm going back to sleep," so she did. "Well, here's my plan. You see, every time we've tried to escape, guards have come immediately. Well, this time, we'll use that to our advantage. Cause when the guards come they'll expect us to give up-"

Li interrupted her. "We tried this plan about four years ago when you first noted this fact," he told her sternly, albeit with a sad expression on his face. "It didn't work, remember?" Alysuoun's hope dived into a fiery pit of boiling lava, also known as despair. She nodded her head and sniffled, accepting a place to cry on Li's shoulder as she finally realized, as she did every time after one her plans was shot down, that there would never be any hope for escape. She looked up at him and met his eyes, trying to smile.

"I'll come up with something," she said softly. "Someday, I swear it, I'll come up with something and we'll get out of here. And then you can find Sakura and we can get out of this godforsaken hell hole." Li, for once, could not find the heart to give the don't-get-your-hopes-up speech. He nodded and drew her close, running a hand threw her hair as he pulled himself out of the Li Position (Alysuoun's words, not his).

"Maybe," he told her quietly. "And maybe Tomoyo and Sakura will be in here to rescue us in just a few days time." He said it sarcastically, only he didn't realize how well he had just summarized the events of the next day, for Tomoyo had just been arrested by the Minister's Police Squad and was on her way to prison with Sakura.

**"."**

_Sakura, young and alive, beamed at him. She loved to make him blush; it was perhaps the easiest thing for her to do around him. He always blushed when he saw her, as if he somehow believed she could read his innermost thoughts. It made him cute, really, though Sakura wished that she could, for once, get to know him. If he weren't so stiff and gentlemanly around her, she could figure him out. But he always blushed. He always smiled and looked away. He always spoke to her as if she were royalty. _

_A crashing noise behind her brought Sakura's attention back to the present. She turned around and saw Tomoyo's tear stained cheeks. "They're coming," she gasped. Li's eyes widened and he turned to Sakura. Now he didn't blush, but he looked like a security guard doing his duty and protecting a princess-or a queen. _

_"Come on," he told her. She shook her head, trying to speak, but she couldn't. 'Tomoyo,' she wanted to tell him, 'I can't leave Tomoyo.' She was many yards away, fighting off a large crew of the Minister's Assassins. He gestured wildly to her again. "Come on! Sakura, we have to get out of here!"_

_She shook her head, planting her feet firmly in the ground and folding her arms across her chest. She couldn't speak, but she could still convey that she wasn't about to leave her cousin behind with those monsters. He gave an exasperated sigh and threw her over his shoulder, running away from the scene of chaos. Sakura screamed and pounded his back, unable to voice her words. 'Let me go! Let me go! I can't leave Tomoyo!'_

_But it was too late…_

**"."**

_To be continued…_


	2. Chapter 2

**Tears of Tyranny**

**Part One**

_To Flee the Fallen Flag_

By Onyx Dawn

**"."**

Chapter Two

**Flee What Comes**

_"Of course, sir, I understand. I'll be ready." With that she hung up the phone and stared at Sakura._

_"We have to go," she said quietly._

_Sakura reacted faster than the pacing of her heart. Tomoyo asked her to jump and Sakura didn't even ask how high. She just did it, and now, more than ever, she knew that was exactly what Tomoyo needed._

Sakura stood up straight and rushed to the table near the couch. She kneeled and grabbed a small green box underneath the table, opening it with a flick of her hand and yanking out a pair of green wire cutters. Tomoyo, meanwhile, was stuffing about three day's rations in a brown paper bag and frantically searching for anything else they might need. They'd been planning the escape for about two and a half years; but never before had they actually put it to action. _But now…_Now they had to.

They both stopped at the open doorway that led into a gloomy hallway and met each others' eyes. "It'll be alright," whispered Tomoyo softly, pulling Sakura into a tight embrace. "I love you," she whispered softly into Sakura's short brown hair. "I really do. If I get caught, you go through with the plan. You remember it, right?" She held Sakura at arm's length and shook her slightly. Sakura nodded, feeling tears well up in her eyes at the thought of agreeing to that. She could never leave Tomoyo behind, but she had long ago promised Tomoyo she would.

"You won't get left behind," she murmured, and Tomoyo gave an anguished sob and pulled Sakura into another hug.

"I love that you can hope, dear," she said, kissing Sakura's head. "Alright then, let's go." They pulled apart and stole into the corridor, fleeing down the stairs and bursting into the streets. Though her feet were bare, Sakura felt no pain because of the fact that the Minister made sure all the sidewalks in all the ghettos were paved to feel like wood floors. In that brief instant, Sakura saw the Minister's face in her mind; but instead of seeing the horrible man she had hated for four years, she saw kindly eyes and a laughing gait. Sakura shook her head of the image and ran down the street behind Tomoyo. The guards, surely, would see them soon. Sakura caught Tomoyo's eyes and Tomoyo nodded.

Together, the two slowed to a stop and started walking at a normal pace. Sakura put her head down, staring at the smooth pavement ahead of her, and listened intently for what she knew would come in only a few moments. And-ah, there it was. A man was speaking. "Miss, it's after hours. I'm going to have to take you to the Government Centre." Sakura could see, out of the corner of her eye, the man grabbing Tomoyo's elbow.

"Sir, I'm sorry." She glanced over at Sakura and winked at her. "Come along, Erika, you heard what the man said." Sakura nodded and followed the two down the street, counting the blocks they passed carefully so that she knew when to act. They passed the first guard tower from their apartment off to the north and started counting her steps instead. She made sure to make every step equal length without seeming suspicious. It wasn't too hard, really, because the guard always walked at an even pace and never expected those who followed him to catch up completely.

The moments passed slowly, too slowly, and Sakura felt that the time for her to act would never come. She knew that Tomoyo was counting her steps too, ready to fight if something went wrong. But it wouldn't, of course, because she and Sakura had been practicing this for almost two years. _Three more steps_, Sakura thought, _two…one._

The guard didn't even have the chance to cry out in protest. Sakura produced the wire cutters from her skirt pockets and lunged at him, stabbing the back of his neck right where the spinal cord met the brain. He fell in a heap and blood oozed from the terrible wound. Sakura froze, horrified. She had not realized, until, what it might mean to kill a man. She could feel bile rising up her esophagus into her throat and she vomited on the road. Tomoyo was beside her instantly, rubbing her back and singing with her glorious voice.

"Hush," she said at last, casting a glance at the body. "I'm sorry, I'm so sorry." She hugged Sakura close to her and kissed her head again. Sakura could have sworn that she felt tears sliding down her cheeks: tears that weren't her own. When Tomoyo pulled away, she wiped her eyes and tried to smile at Sakura. "It'll be alright. That's the last man you'll ever have to kill, I swear it." Her grin faded slightly. "Now let's go."

Sakura had to suppress her feelings and pretend as if she felt nothing in order to follow Tomoyo through the complicated maze they had mapped out together. _Right…right…left…straight…right…left…left…straight…_This walk was even longer than the trip with the guard, and it became harder and harder for Sakura not to react to the thought of killing the man. When the Food and Resource Centre came into sight, Tomoyo breathed a sigh of relief. "Now we turn around," she told Sakura, although neither of them needed to repeat the route. They both knew it by heart.

Tomoyo screamed loudly as a huge buzzing alarm filled the air, shaking the very ground they stood on. That caused Sakura to finally burst into traumatized tears. She collapsed to the ground, resisting Tomoyo's attempts to pick her up and make her run. Shouts rang out through the alley and soon the street was full of people. A booming voice shot out through the neighbourhood. "ALL CITIZENS INSIDE NOW…LOOK OUT FOR SAKURA AND TOMOYO KINOMOTO…IF YOU SEE THEM, CALL THE GOVERNMENT CENTRE…" Sakura started sobbing harder and Tomoyo continued to urge her up.

At last they both found their feet and started running. The crowd of people took nearly ten minutes to die down, at which time Tomoyo and Sakura had made it half way across the ghetto and were panting in exhaustion. Sakura felt as if she would fall down and die at any moment, but kept going because of Tomoyo's urgings. Her feet pounded on the ground rhythmically, becoming the only thing she could hear through the noise of sirens and shouting guards.

"Hey!"

Sakura screamed loudly as the first shot was fired. Tomoyo put on a burst of speed that Sakura could hardly catch up with, but she tried. They ran, faster and faster, and the guards were running behind them. A shot fired right passed her shoulder, almost grazing her skin. Sakura tripped and immediately covered her head.

"Sakura!" Tomoyo yelped, halting and turning around. She was faced with a wall of guards, aiming guns at her. Tomoyo raised her hands in surrender, closing her eyes tightly to allow a few tears to stream down her face. One of the guards stepped forward.

"For attempting to flee the ghetto, you and your companion are to be taken to the Minister's Prison to await a meeting with the gallows," he said shortly. He didn't look at all pleased or gloating, but rather sad and empathetic. Did he understand what they were going through? Did he care? Sakura had raised her head, though her body was still pressed to the ground, and examined the horrible scene before her. The weight of the nameless soldier she had killed pounded on her shoulders, and suddenly she felt as if she deserved nothing less than a 'meeting with the gallows'.

Above her, Sakura heard Tomoyo sob.

**"."**

The Minister stormed through the prison, seething with anger. Tomoyo had promised him years ago that she would abide by his rules if it meant the safety of her dear cousin and now she had broken their compromise. He wouldn't have been incensed if it was anybody else, but a woman with her knowledge of the past could not be trusted being placed in a cell with Alysuoun and Li. The results could be catastrophic for him.

He had no other choice.

The two bulky, dim-witted guards pushed open the heavy wooden door and entered in behind the Minister. They closed the door and shut it with a bang, which gave the Minister the feeling of being locked in a box at the bottom of the ocean. It almost made him feel sorry for his prisoners…almost. As he suspected, Li was huddled up, asleep, in the far corner and Alysuoun was watching him with great interest only a few feet away.

"What is it, father?" she asked him, cocking her head slightly to the side and folding her arms defensively across her chest. She was a smart woman and could sense danger when it came. The Minister felt small satisfaction in making her squirm, wishing rather that she would give up her devotion to a woman who had died almost five years ago.

The Minister waited a moment, folding his arms across his chest in a notorious manor and giving her directions with his scowl. Alysuoun sighed and bent down, shaking Li a bit until he woke up. Li blinked in confusion and grumbled something about singing tarantulas. Alysuoun bit back a small giggle and stood up straight again, quickly joined by Li who stood defensively about a foot in front of her.

"What do you want?" Li snarled rancorously, pushing on Alysuoun's torso with his hand. _Move back,_ he was telling her,_ further from the danger._ For indeed the Minister was a very dangerous man. His grey eyes flared dangerously, lit with a fire that couldn't be doused by the substantial expanse of looming clouds. His jaw was straight, square, and set with the resolve of a threatened lion. His hair, almost white with a few strands of dark grey, lay tousled and ominously chaotic on his imposing round head.

"Nothing, my boy," he spoke in a startlingly mild voice. He did indeed sound like a noble monarch; nothing like the dire man he seemed to be when setting down laws and rules in the land. It might have been hard to believe that he took away innocent persons' human rights relentlessly, but for the fact that both Li and Alysuoun had known him well before being locked up in prison almost five years before.

"Then why are you here?" asked Alysuoun, trying to step away from the protection of her troubled friend. "I know you well enough to know you didn't just come here for a visit." Li, unable to stop her with simply a firm hand, gripped her arm tightly. She tried to wrench herself away, and yelped when his strong grip did not fade. The Minister chuckled, amused to find that his prisoners were on such affable terms with each other.

"Ah, my dear," he said, breathing deeply as he spoke, "I am here for a visit. Not merely a visit, for there is more I must discus with you, but for now all you need to know is that I am here for a visit. I want to see my daughter," he added, holding up a tanned hand in order to obstruct her protests. "Who, I might add," he continued, "has placed her loyalty in a woman who's been dead for more than four years. Would you care to tell me _why_, my dear?"

Li had let go of Alysuoun, who rubbed her arm gingerly. She tried to speak, but Li cut her off. "Leave her alone," he growled. "Leave us alone." Alysuoun sent him an annoyed glance and continued to massage her bruised limb. She didn't say anything, too intrigued by what her father's reaction might be to actually care about salvaging her pride.

"I will," said the Minister sadly, slouching his shoulders just a bit. He looked genuinely disappointed that Alysuoun would not talk to him; of course, any man would if their daughter hated them so. "But I have come here to tell you about your guests. You see, there is no more room in this prison,"-Alysuoun snorted in disgust at this-"so I have decided to place these two in your care. However, I am disinclined to do this because of the _history_ you share." He let the words sink in.

"_Sakura,_" whispered Li, his eyes widening. "How did you get her? She couldn't have done anything wrong!" Li lunged toward the Minister, stopped only by Alysuoun's surprisingly firm gip on his shoulder.

"Stop it, Li, just stop it."

Li, red in the face, calmed down a bit, but continued to glare daggers at the Minister. The Minister stood serenely, his hands clasped behind his back, as he considered the young man with a calculating gaze. "Yes," he said emotionlessly after a moment. "Yes, Sakura and Tomoyo."

Alysuoun let go of Li, her hand falling uselessly to her side. "You've broken your side of the bargain…" she whispered, blue eyes widening to the size of saucers and anger as hot as steaming tea filling them. "How _dare_ you, you-"

"I've not broken my word," the Minister reassured his daughter. "No, she betrayed me by attempting to flee the ghetto. Sakura killed one of my guards."

"That's a lie!" Li roared, lunging once again at the Minister. Alysuoun didn't stop him this time, and it took six guards' interference to save the Minister from vital injury. Throughout the attack, the Minister did not move an inch. His facial expression remained the same stoic lack of emotions. After a moment he sighed and shook his head sadly.

"Let us go, men," he told his guards, and they left.

A few moments of silence followed before Alysuoun asked "Well, what do you make of it?"

**"."**

_"You can't kill her Daddy," Princess Alysuoun said quietly. "You can't. I thought you loved her."_

_Daddy looked down with a weary sigh, tears shining brightly in his eyes. "If I don't, then she might kill me. Would you like that?"_

_Alysuoun shook her head furiously, clutching her daddy's waist. She might have been fifteen, but right now she felt like a baby. She needed her daddy's comfort, even though he was the one Alysuoun was currently distressed about. "But I don't want you to kill her either," Alysuoun admitted. "She's my mommy."_

_He tousled her hair, making a sound that seemed to be half way between a chuckle and a sob. "No, my dear, your mommy died ten years ago. She isn't your mommy. You just have me…I'm your daddy."_

_"But I want a mommy, and she's like my mommy, and Sakura's like my sissy. Please Daddy, don't kill her. Don't, because she's my mommy; the closest I'll ever have to a mommy. And you said you loved her. She said that people would die for the people they love. Don't you love her, daddy?" Alysuoun was desperate; trying to understand why Daddy would kill the woman she had come to know as her mommy._

_"I love her, my Swan, I love her very much. But she has to die." Suddenly Daddy wasn't Daddy anymore, he was the Minister. He stood, powerful and imposing, demanding respect by convincing the world to fear him. Alysuoun shrunk away, feeling her years slip away until she became no more than six years of age. She was small and very fragile with wide blue eyes and small, pale shaking hands._

_"Why did you kill mommy? Didn't you love her?" she asked pitifully, blinking tears from her large blue eyes. "Don't you love mommy?"_

_"Mommy didn't like me," said the Minister. "Mommy didn't deserve to live. You don't like me either. To the gallows with you."_

_"Daddy, don't you love me?" He shook his head._

_"I don't have time to love you," he told her, shooting her a glare. "Now go to the gallows."_

_Suddenly she was standing on a large wooden floor, the itchy noose wrapped around her tiny neck. "Daddy!" She screamed helplessly, praying for her Daddy to come. The Minister was there and he grinned at her._

_"I don't have time to love you," he told her, and pulled the lever. Alysuoun felt herself falling and she screamed at the horror._

_"Daddy!" She sobbed while she was falling, forever falling. "Don't you love me Daddy? Why don't you love me? I love you, Daddy!"_

_But he just said, "I don't have time to love you," and turned away forever._

**"."**

_To be continued…_


	3. Chapter 3

**Tears of Tyranny**

**Part One**

_To Flee the Fallen Flag_

By Onyx Dawn

Chapter Three

**Mister Minister Man**

_"For attempting to flee the ghetto, you and your companion are to be taken to the Minister's Prison to await a meeting with the gallows," he said shortly. He didn't look at all pleased or gloating, but rather sad and empathetic. Did he understand what they were going through? Did he care? Sakura had raised her head, though her body was still pressed to the ground, and examined the horrible scene before her. The weight of the nameless soldier she had killed pounded on her shoulders, and suddenly she felt as if she deserved nothing less than a 'meeting with the gallows'. _

_Above her, Sakura heard Tomoyo sob._

"Get up," the man said softly, bending down and picking Sakura up by the arms. "It's what you get for breaking the rules so severely." He handed a handkerchief from his pocket to Tomoyo; she blatantly turned away and huffed, trying to quell her tears on her own. Sakura said nothing as she looked at the ground, wishing that there was a pattern in the glass-like pavement to pick out and follow with her eyes.

"How far away is the prison?" Sakura asked after a moment, wondering if they might get the chance to escape during the trip. She had once seen a young woman and her baby carried off to the Prison and her guard hadn't return for nearly two months. Sakura hoped that the majority of those two months had been spent on the trip; then she would have reason to hope.

"A few days ride from here," said the guard, beginning to walk. Sakura and Tomoyo, seeing no other option, followed him away from the line of soldiers and to a dark green jeep parked a few blocks away. Sakura felt her hopes falter at the thought of driving in the jeep the whole way there. She had completely forgotten about any other mode of transportation that wasn't walking, simply because they weren't allowed to travel any other way through the ghetto. The guard pushed her into the jeep behind Tomoyo and they drove off.

Within a few minutes they reached the end of the ghetto and the guard got out of the car to talk to a few important-looking men in grey uniforms. After a few moments they all nodded and went to open the large gate that led to the world outside. Despite the severity of the occasion, Sakura could not help the small part of her that marvelled at the sight of trees. Only a few times within the last few years had she actually come close enough to the fence to see the tall, swaying branches and rain of leaves that came during the fall. The bright reds and yellows, oranges and purples, astounded her.

The jeep ran over many of the leaves, though, and Sakura was strongly reminded of the life she had taken. She sunk away from the window and rested her head on the cloth seat. Tomoyo took her hand and rubbed her thumb in circles just over her palm, a relaxing motion that put Sakura to sleep within moments. Time crept slowly along with the sun as it fell the last few stages into the glorious pink and purple horizon. Tomoyo stayed awake, ever watching the driving guard as they ambled slowly (for a jeep) past trees, fields, and ghettos.

Some time later, when the sun was beginning to creep up behind them, Sakura woke up to find her head leaning against Tomoyo's shoulder. Tomoyo was still awake, watching the guard as he turned the steering wheel an inch or so to the left along with the slightly curving road. Sakura rested her head once again on Tomoyo's shoulder and closed her eyes, not to go to sleep, but rather just to know that she had her cousin there to comfort her while her thoughts wandered on murder and death.

Sakura could not remember what she had dreamed the night before, but it had left her shaken and very frightened of the outside realm around her. Once, Sakura had believed that outside would be comforting because it was not stuffy and crowded like the ghetto. However, the unfamiliar wide open spaces scared her something fierce, and she wished desperately that she had never said a word tonight about the government. Then she thought about the injustice of it all. Why did she and Tomoyo deserve to be killed simply for talking about freedom? What kind of land did they live in?

The answer, however, was glaringly obvious. They lived in the land of the Minister, the nameless man who ruled with an iron fist. Sakura could see his face in her mind. The sharp chin and glowering grey eyes that could have killed in a more literal world; Sakura saw that face twist into a smile and the clouds disappeared from his stormy eyes. He seemed younger, in her mind, than he'd ever been in those posters that said 'Long live the Minister!' His face twisted slightly and became a girl's face, though she still looked remarkably like the Minister.

_Swan, you long-necked monster, get back here!_ Sakura could almost hear laughter, but the sound of the jeep's roaring engine rushing to a halt caught her out of the daze that had taken her. She lifted her head from Tomoyo's shoulder and saw that the sun had risen to a midpoint in the sky. Tomoyo's eyes followed the guard as he got out of the jeep and walked up to a man on the side of the road. The stranger had dark brown hair and a slightly pale complexion. Sakura cocked her head to the side, thinking he looked slightly familiar. After an instant, however, the stranger turned away and the guard came back, getting into the jeep and driving off without a second glance back.

Sakura went to sleep on and off as the trip progressed. Her muscles began to seize up a little and she felt in desperate need of a stretch, but they didn't stop. Tomoyo stayed awake, always staring at the guard, unblinking, with an eerie poise of grace about her that Sakura had never noticed before. The earth revolved in its own little circle, making the sun appear to climb and fall from the glorious sky almost five times before the trip was over. At last the jeep halted once more, while Sakura was asleep. She jerked awake and sat bolt up, staring at the palace before her in awe.

Surely this was a dream.

Golden turrets jutted into the sky, illuminated by the falling sun. The castle windows glittered and sparkled like fireflies, and in her confusion, Sakura could have sworn that they danced around the walls. In front of them stood a huge golden gate, blocking entrance to a long curling pathway that led up to a magnificent door, almost has large as the apartment buildings back at the ghetto. Sakura had never believed anything this wonderful could exist, and the thought that it housed a very evil man seemed preposterous. Surely any man who could spend their time designing and building _this_ could not have a spark of evil in them.

The thing about the palace that caught Sakura's eye was the fact that it revolved around simplicity. Though the castle looked golden in front of the golden light of the sun, it was truly a remarkable white marble with swirls of grey and black. The grounds were huge, covered in wild flowers, willow trees, a pond, and birds galore. It took Sakura more than a moment to realize that the guard had pulled her out of the jeep and the three of them were walking through the open golden gates. As they came upon the palace, a building to the right caught Sakura's attention.

_'The Minister's Prison'_ read the very fine, large, cursive print on the door of the small marble building. The guard pushed them inside, bringing them into a gloomy hall. He pushed them a bit more, past cells with perfectly innocent-looking people in them, to a huge glass wall that revealed a room with a square table and several chairs in the middle of it. The guard pushed them inside, and Sakura noticed that where the large window should have been, there was a mirror. She frowned and took the seat offered by another guard.

Tomoyo sat down next to her and tore her gaze from their old guard to the new one. He sat down across from them and scowled, wrinkling his temples in a way that made his white sideburns go black in shadow. He had light brown eyes and was imposingly tall, standing almost so high that Sakura had to turn her head at a seventy degree angle to meet his eyes when he stood up. When he spoke, his voice was oily and sounded like velvet being rubbed the wrong way. It sent shivers through Sakura's body, and she felt Tomoyo tense next to her.

"So, yeh've decided to break yer promise," he said quietly, but his voice echoed in the tiny room like a booming voice would in an empty dining hall. It frightened Sakura even more; so much so that she had to clutch to Tomoyo's shoulder in order to prevent herself from whimpering. "Well, that's a sure road t' death." It took a moment for all of his words to sink into Sakura, and puzzlement began to replace her fear. _Promise?_ She thought, _we've made no promise to this tyrannical government._ She glanced at Tomoyo and mentally beat herself. _Of course we wouldn't._

"I don't see how saying a few brief words about freedom breaks my promise to the Minister, sir," Tomoyo said smoothly. Sakura had never heard that voice, and it frightened and puzzled her even more than the guard. He pulled out a tape recorder and set it on the table.

"Yeh don't?" he asked her, sounding mockingly puzzled. He pressed the 'play' button with his index finger.

"It's alright," Tomoyo's reassuring voice filled the room, creating the same eerie echo the guard's had. "You deserve to know, of course…freedom is like the world on anti-depressants, permanently. Not the best way to describe it, I guess, I've never taken an anti-depressant." For a few moments there was silence. Sakura finally gathered the courage she had been saving over the past few days and spoke quietly.

"How does that," her voice broke slightly, "Condemn us to death, Mister Minister Man?" She hadn't meant to sound so cheeky, but she knew there was no reason to cry over spilt milk. Tomoyo flinched next to her and the guard drew a sharp breath. He looked as if he might slap Sakura for her disrespect, but he pressed the rewind button on the machine again and let new words fill the room. They were words Sakura had never heard from Tomoyo in her life. Indeed, it sounded as if she were muttering the words under her breath and her hitched breathing indicated that she had probably been at work when she said this.

"I don't even know what the use is anymore…Sakura can take care of herself and they wouldn't arrest her for something I did. The Minister doesn't deserve my compliance anymore…" her voice broke off and a bell sounded, sounding very fuzzy in the tape recorder. A few minutes later the sounds of picking up followed, and then Tomoyo muttered something else. "A world on anti-depressants. What a nice way to put it." The guard put his finger on the fast forward button. He pressed play again.

"It's alright, you deserve to know, of course…freedom is like the world on anti-depressants, permanently." The guard pressed his finger on the stop button.

"Not enough to condemn yeh, eh?" he asked, sounding almost joyful. "Of course, yeh killed th' guard, so that'll be enough to have yeh tortured." He stood up and gripped Tomoyo's arm roughly, pulling her up so suddenly that she cried out in pain. Sakura tensed and felt her blood boiling. Maybe it hadn't been such a bad thing to kill that man. The guard grabbed Sakura's arm as well and dragged them out of the room.

He dragged them so quickly through the corridor that Sakura could not match her steps to his. At last she gave up and allowed herself to be dragged, like Tomoyo, who hadn't even tried to walk in the first place. They didn't stop for several minutes, and the sound of the guard's boots hitting the floor steadily filled Sakura's senses like the TV did when she had saved up enough time to watch it. When they stopped, she felt as if her time had run out during her favourite program until she realized just exactly where she was. She sent Tomoyo a terrified glance, trying to catch her attention, but Tomoyo's attention was on the two people in the cell.

Tomoyo, somehow, seemed to know these people.

_"I've not broken my word," the Minister reassured his daughter. "No, she betrayed me by attempting to flee the ghetto. Sakura killed one of my guards."_

_"That's a lie!" Li roared, lunging once again at the Minister. Alysuoun didn't stop him this time, and it took six guards' interference to save the Minister from vital injury. Throughout the attack, the Minister did not move an inch. His facial expression remained the same stoic lack of emotions. After a moment he sighed and shook his head sadly._

_"Let us go, men," he told his guards, and they left._

_A few moments of silence followed before Alysuoun asked "Well, what do you make of it?"_

Li sat back down in his corner and folded his elbows over his knees, letting his hands dangle. "I don't know," he said quietly. "I don't think-Sakura would never kill somebody, not even one of the Minister's guards. It just isn't in her nature; you remember how she always smiled. She always smiled." A slight grin came to his face as a picture of Sakura, so young and innocent, played in his mind. She was laughing at something Alysuoun had said, but a part of her was focused on Tomoyo's singing. He could tell because of the dazed, happy look in her emerald green eyes.

Alysuoun sighed. "Four years can do any number of things to a person. I mean not even you or me are the same as we were back then. The Minister's change changed us all." She sat down next to him again. "And hey, if they are here, at least it'll be us four again. Even if they do kill us shortly afterward…I think the Minister's starting to give up hope that I'll give him my service. But think, you and Sakura. Me and Tomoyo could gossip about Eriol and leave you two _alone_." She wiggled her eyebrows suggestively.

"Shut your trap," Li told her coldly. She giggled.

"Yeah, that's what I thought you'd say," she said with feigned sadness. Then she perked up and smiled. "I guess I'll just have to leave you with Tomoyo, that way _I _can have Sakura all to myself. Very pretty girl…"

Li's eyebrows went up. "Since when," he said calmly, "Do you have interest in _girls_?"

Alysuoun shrugged. "Since forever," she said naughtily. "It's fun to discuss hot guys with them, don't you think?" Li scowled and shook his head, muttering something that sounded oddly like 'girls'. "Well, at least we know four years in this hell hole hasn't changed us _too_ much," she added, smile disappearing. Li shrugged half heartedly. The sound of footsteps came from the corridor and they both looked up.

Alysuoun almost screamed when she saw the two people she'd missed most in the world for the past two years. Sakura and Tomoyo both looked remarkably similar to how they had way back when, albeit they both looked unhealthily skinny and a bit clammy. Tomoyo's hair was still waist-length, ebony in colour except for when light shown on it the right way and it flashed a vibrant bluish-purple. Her lavender eyes were dull, however; not at all the same bright and youthful orbs they'd been four years ago.

Sakura's eyes, similarly, were not the same sparkly emerald green. Alysuoun had never believed that eyes could change colour over time, but now she saw proof of it. Sakura's eyes were still green, but the colour was faded. Her hair was still short and brown, of course, and somehow there was still a spark of naivety about her that they had always made fun of. The guard who had been escorting them opened the cell and threw them in. Tomoyo fell and didn't bother to move for several moments, but Sakura got up immediately and rushed over to help her cousin.

"Tomoyo," she whispered, shaking her shoulders. Tomoyo squeezed her eyes tightly and sat up, wrapping her arms around her legs. She scooted against the wall and Sakura sat down next to her, similar to how Alysuoun had sat down next to Li to comfort him. Tomoyo's lips twitched slightly as she met Li's eyes.

"Long time no see," she said quietly. "I've missed you guys."

Sakura furrowed her brow in surprise. She looked over to the two strangers. Li smiled at her. "I've missed you, too," he said softly. Alysuoun nodded.

"Same," she said.

Sakura tried to figure out…were these figures from her past? Perhaps they had known Tomoyo and Sakura before the accident four years ago. Anyway, she decided to ask. "Who are you?"

At this, Li's eyes widened and Alysuoun's head dropped to her chest in a defeated manner.

"They're old friends," Tomoyo explained, and left it at that.

_Tomoyo handed Li the paper. He glanced at the dress and tried to picture Sakura in it. The image it brought to his mind took his breath away. He grinned at Tomoyo and nodded. "She'll look beautiful in this," he told her. "Absolutely stunning. You're a genius, Tomoyo." She beamed at him and kissed him on the cheek._

_"Absolute genius?" she asked, and he nodded. _

_"Absolute genius," he agreed. He couldn't get the image of Sakura wearing that dress out of his mind. The ball tonight would be wonderful. _

_The screams wafted down the empty corridor; Tomoyo had disappeared. Sakura stood in front of him, wearing the long green dress that matched her eyes and fit her form, revealing just enough to make his mouth go dry. Li ignored the screams and smiled at her, holding his arm out. Sakura took it and kissed his temple lovingly. "We're going to have so much fun tonight," she whispered. The voice was her own, but somehow more seductive. For once, Li actually thought there might be a hidden meaning in her words._

_He blushed. The screams persisted, growing louder and louder. Sakura's eyes seemed to have a red glow to them, but he ignored it because he just wanted to have a fun time tonight, like she said they would. The dining hall was empty; the screams seemed to be coming from invisible people just out of reach. Sakura put her arms around his shoulders and put her head against his chest. The screams became their music and they danced to the night. _

_Tomoyo appeared in the corner, took one look at Sakura, and started shaking her head. "No, no," she said, sounding a bit angry. "That's not what I wanted at all." Li, surprised, looked back down at the dress. It had turned bright pink and frilly, something like the dress Sakura had promised she would never be caught dead wearing. He pushed her away._

_"This isn't you," he told her._

_"No, no, that's not right at all. Get the tailor!" Tomoyo disappeared, leaving a room full of screams and the young couple. Sakura's face changed into a boy's, though he still wore the pink dress. He backed away from Li with a raised eyebrow._

_"What?" he asked, "No kiss? I thought I deserved one after fooling you so well." _

_"Go away, Eriol," Li said. "Go away, please." And he did. Eriol disappeared and Li was left alone in a room of invisible people, all screaming in anguish and agony. He could not pick out the words they spoke, but he knew they condemned the Minister. Li turned around, trying to find the exit, but it wasn't there anymore. He was in the dungeon, even though the screams still persisted around him._

_Sakura was there in a horrible brown skirt that looked as if it had gone through hell and back. She had a pair of scissors in her hand and Tomoyo's words rang through the cell. "No, no, that's not right at all. I didn't want that. Get the tailor." Sakura moved around Li, whose feet were now planted firmly to the ground, and put the point of the scissors at the base of his neck._

_"Yes, Sakura, that's exactly what I wanted. See, it'll be such a nice costume, but costumes can't have brains. Mix up his head." Li wanted to scream. He felt the scissors puncture the base of his neck and he crumbled. He was dead, but perfectly aware of the scissor clawing through his head, jumbling his brain into a pile of mush._

_Tomoyo's laughter filled the room, punctuated only by the sound of Sakura's anguished wail._

_To be continued…_

AN: Updates will be completely spontaneous. This has not been looked over by my beta, Kathleen, so it may take longer than normal to get the next chapter up. Thank you.


End file.
